Village Centre Shops

From the late 19th century to the present day

Introduction

Prior to the later part of the 19th century, the
majority of Angmering's shops were to be found in the High Street and Arundel
Road. Of course, there were not so many as we see in the village today but the
ones that were established were essential to everyday life in the village such
as butchers, bakers, general provisions, saddler, coal merchants, drapers,
shoemaker, etc.

The location of the shops may be a surprise to us today
as virtually all of the village shops are to be found in The Square.

But first, perhaps, we should define the areas known as
The Green and The Square. The Green is the triangle of land in the centre of
the village containing the war memorial while The Square is whole of the area
comprising all the shops in the village centre (but not those on Church Hill),
The Green, the houses opposite The Green to its east, Eachways, The Lamb, Pooks
Hill Cottage, and Blaber House.

So why the change? The principal reason for this was
that The Square, as we know it today, was subject to regular flooding. Even
now, every few years, The Square can become a lake after a severe deluge of
rain.

June 2012

In the 19thC, a rowing boat was employed for taking
people from one side of The Square to the other when the roads were impassible.
A stream called Black Ditch (also known locally by some as Patching Stream)
runs from Patching Pond through the village centre before winding its way west
and into the River Arun. Up to the mid-19thC, there was a pond in the area
where The Green is situated today, but this often was considerably larger under
flood conditions. The pond was fed by the stream coming down from Patching and
it continued from the pond's southern side across the Ham Manor estate.

Village centre in 1813 showing
pond

It can be seen from the map above that few buildings
bordered The Square in 1813 and those that did, including the Elmgrove houses,
were on higher ground; others were farm buildings. On the eastern side of the
pond, in the middle of the thoroughfare, a building can be seen. This is
believed to be a forge which utilised water from the stream. The old public
houses - The Lamb to the north of the forge and The Red Lion to its south -
were situated on slightly higher land.

This flooding affected the everyday life of villagers
and so, in the mid-19thC, the stream was culverted under the village centre
from the rear of the property Eachways on the eastern side of The Square to the
rear of The Big Fry shop on the western side. The pond was filled and, at the
turn of the 20thC, the pond's former area was landscaped and lime trees
planted. With the stream culverted, the flooding in The Square was minimised
which encouraged shops to be opened there. Gradually, over the next century,
virtually all village shops migrated to The Square to the extent that there are
no longer any shops in the High Street or Arundel Road except those adjoining
The Square at the foot of Stubbs Hill and Church Hill.

The Shops in the village centre

The shops' histories are set out below using the
following map to identify their locations:

.

Building histories

[dates do not necessarily suggest date business commenced in location,
just the time or approximate time when the business was there]

There are probably inaccuracies in the above listing and
certainly missing businesses. It would be appreciated if corrections and
updates could be sent to me at Angmering Village Life (see Contacts page).

Neil Rogers-Davis September
2012

Note: I would like to thank Roy Green and
Richard Standing for their assistance in identifying Angmering businesses. Also
Sharon Francis.